Robert Paul Schweikher (1903–1997) was a mid-century modern architect from

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Colorado.

Biography

Paul Schweikher was born in

, Colorado in 1903 to a family of musicians. He originally trained at the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University of Co ...

for a year (1921–22) before marrying his wife. He moved with her to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, Illinois and studied at

The Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...

while working for the firm of Lowe & Bollenbacher. Schweikher worked his way up from a

clerk A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record keeping, filing, staffing service ...

to a construction supervisor. After two-and-a-half years at the firm, Schweikher left to join the David Adler practice. Among the projects that Schweikher worked on was the William McCormick Blair Estate in

Lake Bluff Lake Bluff is a village in Lake County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 5,616. History The first settler family to claim land within the area now part of Lake Bluff arrived in 1836. They claimed 100 acres of ...

, Illinois. He later studied at the

Armour Institute of Technology Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Tracing its history to 1890, the present name was adopted upon the merger of the Armour Institute and Lewis Institute in 1940. The university has prog ...

before again transferring to, and receiving a degree from, the

Yale School of Architecture The Yale School of Architecture (YSOA) is one of the constituent professional schools of Yale University, and is generally considered to be one of the best architecture schools in the United States. The School awards the degrees of Master of Arc ...

. He returned to Chicago after his schooling in 1930 and collaborated with

George Fred Keck George Frederick Keck (1895-1980) was an American modernist architect based in Chicago, Illinois. He was later assisted in his practice by his brother William Keck to form the firm of Keck & Keck. Biography Keck was born in Watertown, Wisconsin, ...

and Philip Maher. He quickly rose to prominence, and his works were included in an exhibition at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

in 1933. His work was also exhibited at the

Century of Progress International Exposition A Century of Progress International Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States, from 1933 to 1934. The fair, registered under the Bureau International des Expositio ...

. Schweikher joined the practice of Lamb and Elting in 1934. In 1953, Schweikher was named chairman of the Yale School of Architecture, following the retirement of George Howe. Five years later, he resigned from the university to take a position as head of the Carnegie School of Architecture. He retired in 1970 and moved to

Sedona Sedona is a city that straddles the county line between Coconino and Yavapai counties in the northern Verde Valley region of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2010 census, its population was 10,031. It is within the Coconino National Fo ...

, Arizona, where he opened a small practice. Schweikher died in 1997.

Buildings and projects

* 1932: Eliason House, Chicago, Illinois. (unbuilt) ** Model exhibited at the

in 1933. * 1936:

Third Unitarian Church The Third Unitarian Church (TUC) is a Unitarian Universalist church in the West Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It was founded in November 1868. Because of its pioneering architecture for its day, it has become much of a landmark in Ch ...

, Chicago, Illinois. ** Listed as a

Chicago landmark Chicago Landmark is a designation by the Mayor and the City Council of Chicago for historic sites in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Listed sites are selected after meeting a combination of criteria, including historical, economic, archite ...

. * 1937–38: Paul Schweikher House and Studio, Roselle (now

Schaumburg Schaumburg is a district (''Landkreis'') of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by (clockwise from the north) the districts of Nienburg, Hanover and Hamelin-Pyrmont, and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (districts of Lippe and Minden-Lübbe ...

), Illinois. ** Listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. * 1939–42: Redwood Village Cooperative (a.k.a. North Shore Cooperative), Glenview, Illinois. * 1940: Lewis House, Park Ridge, Illinois. * 1940: S.W. Burda House, Mount Prospect, Illinois. * 1947: Donald Berg House, Glen Ellyn, Illinois. * 1948: Upton House, Scottsdale, Arizona. (later destroyed) * 1950: Finch House, Paradise Valley, Arizona. * 1950: R. Harring, Jr. House, Highland Park, Illinois. * 1954: Alfred A. Schiller House, Glen Ellyn, Illinois. ** Listed on the National Register of Historic Places. * 1955: Josiah Willard Gibbs Research Laboratories, Yale University. * 1956: Allen Hall, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York. * 1958: Unitarian Church, Evanston, Illinois. * 1962–66: Student Union at

Duquesne University Duquesne University of the Holy Spirit ( or ; Duquesne University or Duquesne) is a private Catholic research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded by members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, Duquesne first opened as the Pittsbu ...

, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. * 1965: Carnegie Library, Knoxville Branch, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. * 1967: Craig Wright House, Fox Chapel, Pennsylvania. * 1970: WQED Building, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. * 1972: Schweikher House, Sedona, Arizona

References

Paul Schweikher biography by the Art Institute of Chicago

Paul Schweikher oral history (1984)

Paul Schweikher Collection at Arizona State University

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schweikher, Paul 1903 births 1997 deaths Architects from Colorado Architects from Denver Illinois Institute of Technology alumni Yale University alumni 20th-century American architects People from Sedona, Arizona